V e g a n D a d

Monday, May 29, 2017

This is a recipe I developed over two years ago that never saw the light of day. With BBQ season now upon us I thought would dust it off. There is perhaps nothing I love more that a marinated, grilled oyster mushroom. And certainly everyone will think you’re a fun guy when you make this traditional
side salad as the main meal—all done on the barbecue!

INGREDIENTS

Dressing:

·½ cup (125 mL) soy milk (more as needed)

·½ cup (125 mL) vegan mayonnaise

·2 tsp (10 mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice

·2 small cloves garlic, minced

·1 tbsp minced capers

·½ tsp each light soy sauce, brown sugar

·¼ tsp each apple cider vinegar, mustard powder,
onion powder

·1 tsp miso

·pinch ground ginger

·salt and pepper to taste

Salad:

·2 small hearts of romaine lettuce

·¼ cup (60 mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice

·2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil

·seasoned salt

·16 large shitake mushrooms, stems removed

·3/4 lb (375 g) oyster mushrooms, stems on

·1/2 cup (125 mL) croutons

METHOD

Oil grill and preheat barbecue to med-high

Dressing:

1. In a
medium bowl, whisk together dressing ingredients. Season to taste with salt and
pepper and thin with more soy milk to get desired consistency.

Salad:

1. Slice
romaine in half lengthwise, leaving core intact.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk
together lemon juice, oil, salt and cayenne. Lightly brush over cut side of
romaine. Set romaine aside on a tray.

3. Place mushrooms (cut oyster mushrooms
into smaller pieces if needed) in remaining lemon juice mixture in a baking
tray. Toss to coat. Season with seasoned salt. Let marinate for 15 mins

4. Place romaine cut-side down on grill. Place mushrooms on grill. Barbecue romaine
for about 3 mins on the oiled side, and mushrooms, about 3-5 mins per side.

5. Set each romaine half on a plate. Divide shitake mushrooms evenly among the
plates. Remove stems from oyster mushrooms and divide among the plates. Scatter
with croutons. Drizzle with dressing. Serve.

Thursday, January 19, 2017

Welcome to the new year! If your 2017 is going to be anything like my 2016, then you will need this recipe to get some rich bunly goodness into your meals post haste. They are a little more stodgy than a regular bun, but, hey, you can make these in one hour and 15 minutes and they taste better than anything from the grocery store. The key is to have a nice warm place to help the dough rise quickly. The baking powder also gives them a better oven rise.

METHOD0:00 - 10:00: Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and yeast. Whisk apple cider vinegar into the soy milk, then whisk in water. Add to flour along with the oil. Bring into a dough and knead until smooth. Shape into a ball.

10:00 - 30:00: Place dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place.

30:00 - 35:00: Shape dough into 6 boules. Place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Flatten into more of a puck-like shape. Brush with warm soy milk.

35:00 - 50:00: Let buns rise in a warm place, brushing with soy milk one more time half way through the rise. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

50:00 - 60:00: slash buns about 1/3 of the way through with a sharp knife. Brush once more with soy milk and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Finish the rise. The final buns won't have as much rise as a regular dough but don't worry, they have a good oven rise.

1:00:00 - 1:15:00: Bake the buns for 7.5 minutes, then rotate pan and bake for another 7.5 minutes. Cool and serve.

Saturday, October 22, 2016

Vegan Daughter watched a movie at her friend's house last night and was intrigued with the bread sticks that came with their pizza order. She asked if I could make some for our pizza and movie night tonight. Vegan Son #3 is on a trip to Niagara Falls with his best friend this weekend, so I used his portion of pizza dough to make these. So, if you don't want to make six pizzas as my dough recipe allows, consider making some bread sticks.

Friday, October 21, 2016

I developed this recipe to get rid of the many cans of beans I had sitting in my fridge, drained of their precious aquafaba. The beans up the protein content of the bread and enrich the dough, giving it a wonderfully soft texture and more delicate crumb. Although the sponge does smell rather "beany," the chickpeas are indistinguishable in the final loaf. I always make a double recipe (in two separate bowls) and bake four loaves, or two loaves and a dozen buns. (And I apologize for my idiosyncratic measurements. That's just how I roll.)

1. Make the Sponge: Whisk together flour and yeast. Place your blender container on your scale, add the chickpeas, then the water to make 20oz. Blend until very smooth. Add to the flour and mix with a wooden spoon until blended. It will take a little elbow grease. Cover and let sit for an hour.

2. Make the Dough: add the remaining ingredients to the sponge and bring into a dough. Knead for 5-7 mins, or until smooth.

3. Let rise in a lightly oiled bowl for an hour, or until doubled in size.

4. Punch dough down. If Making Bread: divide into two, shape into loaves, and let rise in 1.5 lb loaf pans. Bake at 350 for 38-40 mins. If Making Buns: divide into 12 pieces and shape into boules. Flatten into pucks and let rise on a large baking sheet (or two) lined with parchment paper. Brush with soy milk and bake at 400 degrees for 15-17 minutes.

*NOTE 1: You can use hard baking flour, all purpose flour, or a mix of the two. All purpose flour gives the bread a "country loaf" feel and is perfect for hamburger and hotdog buns (and makes a great loaf too). When I use hard flour, I usually slash the tops of the loaves (and the hamburger buns) before baking (as you can see in the picture). You can also use whole wheat flour but may have to add more water to the final dough.

*NOTE 2: I realize cans of chickpeas vary in size. Generally here they are around 12-15 oz. Half of any can will work, as long as your total liquid is 20 oz.

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

This is the last of my pumpkin recipes for this fall. It's too late for Canadian Thanksgiving, but these could be a hit at your very own American Thanksgiving. The filling has lots of pumpkin flavour but has a lighter texture than usual pumpkin pie filling. The filling does not have to be baked so these tarts come together relatively quickly.

3. While cashews are soaking, add aquafaba and xanthan gum to a mixer bowl. Fix the mixer with a balloon whisk and whisk on med-hi speed until foamy. Add sugar 1 tbsp at a time, and blend until soft peaks form.

4. Put the soaked cashews and the remaining ingredients (but not the aquafaba mixture) in a blender. Blend until very smooth.

5. Pour the blender contents into a saucepan and cook on the stove or medium heat, stirring constantly. When bubbling, cook for two minutes.

7. Spoon mixture into the cooled tart shells (save any leftovers in the fridge and call it pumpkin custard). When they reach room temperature, transfer to the fridge to fully cool. I think these taste best the next day.